Three Things You’re Doing That Kill Your Productivity

There’s always more work to do. To handle it all, it is important that we maximize our productivity. Some of the things that we think are helping are actually holding us back. Here are three things to stop doing:

Trying to be perfect: You’re not perfect. No one is. So stop trying to pretend otherwise in your day-to-day tasks. When you get caught up in perfectionism, you typically waste time procrastinating because you never feel it’s good enough. When you let go of trying to be perfect, you feel prepared to meet the challenge and know when the work is good enough to move on to the next phase. It makes you more efficient and productive.

Forcing yourself to be neat: In the corporate world, many companies have policies over how you have to keep your desk. When clients are coming in on a regular basis, it makes sense to keep things neat. However, if having a lot of email in your inbox doesn’t bother you, then why spend hours each week trying to get to inbox zero? If you are fine with a messy desk, then don’t sweat having a few piles here and there. These are only problems when they distract you or inhibit your productivity. If somebody says, ‘Hey I need this paper’ and you can, within 30 seconds to a minute, find that paper very easily, then whatever system you’ve got going on is working for you.

Trying to do everything yourself: When you encounter a roadblock, setback or unfamiliar territory, you’re much more likely to waste time trying to figure it all out yourself than if you reach out for help. Getting advice or a helping hand can save time and provide valuable insight and lessons. Seek out a colleague, mentor or other trusted source of knowledge or solutions instead of trying to do everything on your own.

To find out how The Modern Observer Group can help you maximize productivity for you and your organization, contact us here or email us at info@modernobserver.com